Snowboarding has become a popular past-time for many people. Snowboarding differs from skiing principally in the use of a single board with two spaced apart bindings for a person's feet instead of two skis with a binding for each foot of the person. A skier typically uses two ski poles to control motion on snow surfaces. Generally, a ski pole is not used by snowboarders, since the snowboard is wider than a ski and usually a person is able to maneuver the snowboard like a surfboard. A snowboarder controls the snowboard by shifting the snowboarder's weight from side to side like a surf board.
In some situations, such as when the slope of a hill is flat, the snowboarder may lose momentum. Instead of having to unstrap one's boots from their snowboard bindings to walk the snowboard across the flat slope, it would be useful for a snowboarder to have a snow pole to help push the snowboard along while remaining strapped into the snowboard bindings. Additionally, a pole would also be useful when a snowboarder is unable to use a foot for safely maneuvering the snowboard.
Collapsible and adjustable poles for skiing are known. Hoffman, U.S. Pat. No. 6,217,073 disclosed a manually extendable and retractable shaft for a snow pole with a basket or plate at one end of the snow pole shaft. The basket or plate end of the snow pole is placed against the snow surface, so that the snowboarder can push along the surface of the snow. According to Hoffman's disclosure, the collapsible snow pole is substantially a regular-sized ski pole which must be carried like a small ski pole by the snowboarder and does not permit hands-free snowboarding. Furthermore, the Hoffman snow pole is very large and is attached to the snowboard in between the snowboard bindings. Most snowboarders would find this to be cumbersome and dangerous, because it leaves very little room for a snowboarder to place his/her rear boot when getting on and off the chair lift. Such a large snow pole may also prove to be dangerous for freestyle snowboarders riding through a terrain park, because the snow pole could detach from the snowboard and hit the snowboarder or someone else.
The present inventor has recognized the need for a snow pole and snowboard binding combination that allows the snow pole to be conveniently and safely stored on the snowboard binding so that the snowboarder may ride the snowboard hands-free. The snow pole will also preferably be automatically extendable and retractable. The present inventor's snow pole also has additional advantages including an emergency flag housed within the handle of the snow pole and a homing device which may be activated by the snowboarder during an emergency.